NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) – Dion Dixon stole the ball and dunked to put Cincinnati ahead for good with 1:32 left, and the Bearcats edged out Florida State, 62-56, Sunday night to reach their first regional semifinal in the NCAA tournament since 2001.
Cincinnati (26-10) will play No. 2 seed Ohio State in Boston on Thursday night in the East, giving the state of Ohio four teams out of the last 16 still standing.
Sean Kilpatrick scored 18 points; Dixon finished with 15 for Cincinnati. Yancy Gates finished with 10, and JaQuon Parker grabbed 11 rebounds.
Florida State (25-10) snapped a six-game winning streak that took the Seminoles to their first Atlantic Coast Conference tournament title. But the ‘Noles are heading home short of the regional semifinal they reached a year ago.
Luke Loucks led the Seminoles with 14, Bernard James had 11 and Michael Snaer had 11.
Ohio tops USF, continues cinderella bid
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) – Walter Offutt scored 21 points, D.J. Cooper had 19 and No. 13 seed Ohio beat South Florida, 62-56, on Sunday night to advance to the NCAA tournament’s Midwest Regional semifinals.
The Bobcats (29-7) will play No. 1 seed North Carolina in their second trip to the regional semifinals.
Ohio trailed by two when Offutt swished a 3-pointer, launching a 10-0 run for the Bobcats. A pair of free throws by Cooper made it 54-46 with 3:28 left.
The Bobcats had a 59-53 lead when Toarlyn Fitzpatrick connected for South Florida’s first 3-pointer of the half. But Cooper went 3 for 4 from the line while the Bulls missed three shots in the final 36 seconds.
Gators chomp Spartans in second straight rout
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) – No big upset this time. Kenny Boynton and Florida were just too good for surprising Norfolk State. Boynton scored 20 points, and the balanced Gators routed the 15th-seeded Spartans, 84-50, on Sunday to reach the regional semifinals of the NCAA tournament for the second straight year.
Norfolk State shook up the West Regional when it upset No. 2 seed Missouri, 86-84, on Friday, and was trying to become the first 15 seed to reach the round of 16.
Florida put a quick end to that idea, making five 3-pointers during a 25-0 run that made it 29-6 midway through the first half.
The seventh-seeded Gators (25-10) made it to the regional semifinals for the sixth time in 12 NCAA tournament appearances under coach Billy Donovan. They will play No. 3 seed Marquette on Thursday in Phoenix after their second straight runaway win.
Johnson rallies Kansas to 63-60 win over Purdue
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) – Elijah Johnson scored 18 points, including the go-ahead basket in the final minute, and No. 2 seed Kansas rallied to beat Robbie Hummel and No. 10 seed Purdue, 63-60, on Sunday night.
Thomas Robinson managed 11 points and 13 rebounds for the Jayhawks (29-6), who trailed nearly the entire game but still managed to advance to St. Louis. They’ll play No. 11 seed North Carolina State in the Midwest Regional semifinals.
Purdue was clinging to a 60-59 lead and had the ball and under a minute remaining when Lewis Jackson, the shot clock winding down, lost control at the top of the key. Johnson picked it up and went the other way for the go-ahead layup with 23.3 seconds left.
Hummel missed an open 3-pointer at the other end, and Tyshawn Taylor scored a transition dunk for Kansas with 2.5 seconds left. After a timeout, Purdue sharpshooter Ryne Smith unloaded a long potential tying 3-point try that hit the backboard and the rim before falling away.
 
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